The Kissing Game
by Seacow-Crossing3
Summary: Lions, hunters, and kisses! Oh my! What's a girl like Xion going to do in a situation like this? A SoXion fic.
1. Chapter 1: Once upon a time

**Author's note: **Happy late SoXion day everybody!

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><p>Run, just keep running. That's the only thing the poor girl was thinking at that very moment. Her short black hair was swept back by the force from her running. She put one hand on her throat to calm the burning sensation and pain.<p>

"Come on Xion! You're never going to win at this rate!" yelled out one of the girls that were far away from her.

"It's no use! She can't run far. She always loses at this game. Just leave her." yelled one of the other girls. The pack of girls running in front of her sped up and left Xion behind. All she could hear was a soft whisper, "Sorry Xion."

Xion couldn't take it anymore. She stopped running and fell on top of the grass. Her breathing was heavy and her head was dizzy. "I can't do it anymore. I quit! I give up! I don't want to play this stupid game anymore. It was dumb in the first place. Why did I even agree to it! I should have stayed home." She sat up and then examined herself. Her hands, legs, and her black dress were covered in dirt and soil, "Great, now I got myself dirty too." Xion looked around for a while. No one was going to come get her. If she went home she would get another scolding from her mother.

Her vision was getting clearer after she rested and saw a forest nearby. She never noticed it before. She didn't know it even existed near her town. Curiosity took hold of Xion. She got up from her spot and walked toward the forest. She should have known better than to go into the forest after reading many fairy tales but she had nothing else to do.

The forest was dark but not dark enough that it's not visible. Xion followed the path of a creek so she wouldn't get lost. It was very quiet and the stillness scared Xion but she forced herself to push forward.

All of a sudden, Xion heard a rustling noise coming from the bushes. She stepped back for a minute and looked aimlessly around her to see who was making that noise. The rustling noise got louder and louder. The girl was shivering and randomly picked up a branch.

"Stay back who ever you are! I have a stick and I'm not afraid to use it!" yelled Xion. She held the stick in front of her as if she was a samurai. Then something jumped out of the bushes and flew straight at the girl. She tried to block the object but it was too heavy and it latched onto her dress.

Xion fell backwards and closed her eyes; fearing of what was on her. "Was it a bullet? A football? This thing is awfully heavy." She thought to herself, "And… furry? Wait a minute, do I hear sniffing?" Xion mustered all of her strength to open her eyes.

With her eyes open the first thing she saw were two blue eyes, like hers, looking right at her. The thing had brown and white fur, brown spiky hair on its head, and a metal necklace around its neck. Its black nose was up at Xion's face making sniffing noises. As she put the pieces together, Xion realized what the thing was.

"Oh my gosh, you're a lion! A lion! Lions can't be here; they live in savannas. Not forests! Oh no, it's going to eat me!" exclaimed Xion.

The ears of the lion perked up and immediately ran into a log. As soon as the lion hid, two men came out of the bushes. The first man had blue hair while the other one had grey hair. Their clothes look like they came from the army and they carried around two rifles in their hands. They looked around in a hurry with sweat dripping down their face. The man with blue hair spotted Xion and signaled the man with grey hair. She got scared and ran behind a tree.

"Stay back you two, you guys are evil!" screamed Xion.

"Evil? Why do you assume we are evil?" asked the man with grey hair.

"You two have guns! My daddy told me that people with guns are bad guys! He also told me that I have to stay away from people with guns. If I don't, I get killed!" explained Xion.

"Don't worry; we're not going to shoot you. We're just looking for a certain vermin running around this forest." Said the grey haired man, "If you can tell us if you seen it or not, then we will be on our way. No harm done."

Xion was silent and then asked, "What does it look like?"

"It looks like a giant, brown fur ball with four legs. It has a tuff of hair on its head like a porcupine. And it has a crown necklace."

"Like a giant rat." said the man with long blue hair.

"Exactly." agreed the grey haired man.

Xion knew they were talking about the brown lion that was hiding in the log. Her eyes moved from the men to the log. She saw the lion was scared with fear in its eyes. The lion then put its paws onto its face; afraid of what's going to happen next.

Xion opened her mouth and said, "I have no idea what you are talking about!"

The faces of the two men had disappointment on it and the grey haired one said, "Okay, let's go Saix."

"Wait Xenmas!" whispered Saix, "What about the girl? Shouldn't we get rid of her? She saw us and she might tell everyone in town that we're here."

Xenmas looked at Xion and then whispered to Saix, "We should but we can't. Her parents might file into the police for a missing child and find her body here. Killing her would get us in trouble. Besides, it's too messy and we're just here for the lion." Xenmas looked back at the black haired girl and yelled, "Go home, kid. It's not safe here. Ok?"

Xion nodded and the two men left. She waited a few minutes until she knew the two men were gone. Once the coast was clear, Xion ran from the tree to the log where the scared lion hid. She bent down and said in a soft voice, "It's okay Mr. Lion. The scary men are gone. You can come out now." the lion wouldn't budge and the little girl decided to comfort it by rubbing it like she would do with her neighbor's cat. The lion removed its paw from its face and looked up at her.

She smiled, "Looks like you're feeling better now. Well, I have to go home now. It's getting late. I wish you the best of luck." Xion got up and started to walk down the creek path. She heard crunching noises and turned around to see the lion was following her.

"No Mr. Lion you can't come home with me! I'm not allowed to bring home pets!" said Xion. It didn't listen though, the lion just kept walking closer to her. "I said no Mr. Lion! No means no!" it came closer; "I mean it!" it was practically standing near her legs.

Xion got frustrated and decided to keep on walking. She tried to ignore it but sometimes she would look back to see if it was still following her. And it was. She decided to make a run for it but little did she know that the lion was faster than her. Xion forgot she was the slowest when it came to running. As she was running, Xion tripped over a tree root and scraped her knee. The young child found herself on the ground and tried to stand up. But she couldn't because her knee was badly injured. Blood was spilling out and her knee was red and hot. She found a big rock near the creek and crawled her way to it. The situation looked bad and she didn't really know what to do. She was only 10 years old and alone in the forest. Her parents never taught her anything about surviving on her own. She felt helpless and afraid. There was nothing else she could do.

Xion put her hands to her face to catch the tears from her eyes. She wept softly to make sure no one heard her. As she was crying, Xion felt something wet on her knee. She took her hands away from her face and saw the lion licking her knee. She was disgusted by this but it made the pain go away, so she couldn't complain about it. The lion looked up at her afterwards with its big eyes as if it was saying, "I'm sorry."

Xion stopped crying and used her wrists to wipe away her tears. She picked up the small lion and said, "Apology accepted." Then she hugged it like a stuffed animal.

The lion lied down on Xion's lap and Xion began stroking its fur. She did this for a few minutes and then began starting to say, "You know, this is actually nice. I never was allowed to have pets. Mom and Dad said I can't have animal friends but human friends. They said that I read too much in my room and I should socialize more. But I don't like the kids in my neighborhood. They like to play this game called the "kissing game". It's really stupid if you ask me." The small lion made a noise that sounded like it was interested. Xion took the hint and explained about the game, "Well the "kissing game" is when either the boys or girls try to kiss the other girl or boy. If the girl or boy is able to place a kiss then they win. If not then they lose. I lose either way though."

"Maybe you can kiss me?"

Xion stopped stroking the lion. "Did you just talk?"

"Uh, yes?" answered the animal.

"Oh my goodness gracious!" screamed Xion, "You talked! I thought a lion in a forest was bad enough, but a talking lion?"

"Whoa, calm down! This is why I didn't say anything in the first place! Calm down." assured the lion.

Xion hugged herself and took a couple of deep breathes. Then she got up from her seat and placed the lion onto the rock. Her knee felt better so she was able to stand.

The 10 year old pulled herself together and said, "Okay, so you're a talking lion. Right, okay. So, do you have a name?"

"Sora, my name is Sora. What about you? What's your name?"

"M-my name! Um, it's Xion…"

"Xion, that's a pretty name!" When he said that, Xion blush a little. But then she thought Sora was only saying that just to be polite.

There were so many questions that Xion wanted to ask like "where did you come from?" or "why can you talk?" but instead she asked, "Why do you want to kiss me?"

She noticed Sora's cheeks turning a little red and he turned his head away a little from her. He answered, "Well… you said that you always lost the game. So I thought maybe if you kiss me then you'll win. The rules have nothing against male lions, right?"

"I guess not. But wouldn't it be weird to kiss a lion?"

"Naw, it won't! It's just one kiss on the lips. Nothing to it!"

"You seem really persistent about the whole kissing thing."

"Just one kiss?"

Xion was hesitant about the whole kissing a lion thing. But Sora's pleas annoyed her. Plus, there was something odd about Sora that made her curious. Especially when she looked down at her knee to see it "magically" healed in an instant!

"All right, just one kiss. Only because you helped heal my knee." Sora's face was gleaming with joy and positioned himself on the rock.

Sora closed his eyes and kind of puckered up his lips. Xion was becoming more and more nervous. She didn't want to do it, but for some reason she felt like she needed to do it. Her mind was jumbled up and confused. She closed her eyes and rammed her face into Sora's face just to get it over with. When the lips of Xion and Sora met, Xion started to feel something warm. When she opened her eyes, Xion found Sora's body glowing. A bright light blinded her eyes and she looked away with her arms covering her face.

The brightness faded away and Xion took her arms away from her face. She didn't see the lion anymore. Instead she saw a young boy with spiky brown hair and sapphire eyes in front of her. He stood on the rock where the lion was before. He wore clothes of royalty with a crown on his head.

The boy jumped off the rock, and walked up to Xion. The bewildered girl was too dumbstruck by what just happened. She found the boy was the same height as she was without the spiky hair in the way.

She uttered, "Sora?"

He smiled and said, "Congratulations Xion, you won yourself a prince."

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> People will find thier Prince/Princess Charming in odd places. Hope you like the story! Don't forget to rate and review so I know what to improve on in the future.


	2. Chapter 2: Must be a dream

"Wait a minute, this can't be happening." Xion thought to herself. At first there was a talking lion in front of her and now a talking boy. She put her hand onto her head in disbelief, "I need to sit down." Her vision became distorted and she blacked out.

Suddenly she found herself facing the ground. Sora's hands were keeping her upper body suspended in the air making sure she didn't touch the dirt. "Whoa Xion, are you okay?" worried Sora.

"W-what's going on? Why am I not standing?"

"You don't remember falling down? You scared me you know!"

Xion laid there for a while trying to piece together the events that just happened until everything clicked, "You! Don't touch me!" Xion pushed away from the prince and staggered onto her own feet.

"Ah Xion!" Sora tried to stretch his hand out to help her but she swatted it away. He pulled back his arm as he watched Xion lean on a nearby tree for support.

"You can't be real!" accused Xion, "Animals don't turn into people just from a kiss. That's impossible."

"Xion, please calm down."

"No, I won't calm. How can I? This must be a dream. Yeah, maybe I'm dreaming right now and I just need to wake up." the little girl started to pinch her arm but let go when the pain became unbearable. Still seeing the strange boy she began a series of pinching determined to "wake up".

"Uh, Xion…"

"Ow!"

"What are you doing?"

"Ow! I'm trying to wake up."

"By hurting yourself?"

"…" obviously her plan wasn't working since she was still able to talk to Sora. Xion stopped pinching herself and looked for an alternative way. That's when she saw the rushing creek nearby.

"That's it! If I jump into the creek then I will be able to wake up!" in a split second, Xion ran to the creek.

When Sora figured out what she was doing he yelled, "Xion what are you… Xion don't do it!"

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><p>Both Xion and Sora were lying near the edge of the creek coughing out water. They were drenched head to toe and unable to move but they had the strength to yell at each other.<p>

"That was crazy Xion!" yelled Sora, "You could have drowned!"

"Oh my gosh, you are real. Everything is real." Xion mumbled.

"Of course I'm real! You dying could have been real too."

"Hey, it's not my fault that I freaked out before. You think seeing a lion transform is normal?"

"That lion saved your life you know."

The two 10-year olds were silent until Xion said softly, "I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Are you hurt?" responded Sora.

"No." answered Xion but he could tell she was lying. He could see the cuts and bruises on her arms and face. Probably from the rocks that were in the creek. He wasn't even sure if Xion broke any bones.

Sora reached over to Xion's shoulder and placed his hand there. Suddenly, a green transparent light swirled around Xion; healing her wounds in the process. When he took his hand away, the light disappeared. With new found strength, Xion was able to sit up. She examined her arms and hands and looked at him with awe. "Did you make those green lights?" asked Xion. Sora nodded his head up and down. "What were those lights?"

"It's just a simple healing spell." answered Sora.

The girl's eyes widen, "A spell? Does that mean you're like a wizard?"

"A wizard? What's that?" said Sora, "I don't know what that is but I guess I can tell you that …" Sora stopped himself and sat right up. His casual behavior became more alert and serious.

"Sora what's wrong? Why did you…" Sora covered Xion's mouth with his hand.

"Shh!" whispered Sora, "Listen."

Xion did as she was told and understood what made the strange boy act weird all of a sudden. She could hear chattering far away with voices that sounded familiar. She gulped as fear began to consume her.

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><p><strong>Author's note:<strong> Hello all, sorry for making this chapter short. Surprisingly, a lot of you wanted me to continue this story and asked that I hurry it up ;_;. I'm really glad a lot of people like this story and I hope you stay with me to the very end of the story. I'm so happy. :)

So, who do you think is making those chattering noises?


	3. Chapter 3: The hunters are coming

**A/N:** What's this? Chapter 3 already? Wow, I didn't know we would already have a third chapter up so soon for this story. I know the story is a little slow (I'm not sure if anyone is thinking this way) but I will pick up the pace in the next chapter. Some of you might notice that I changed the rating from K+ to T. The story might be a little violent so I didn't want to get in trouble. I'm very thankful for those who are still following this story, reviewing it, and giving me so much support. I love you all.

To LittleKing9512 (since there was no reply option): I am really confuse about the first reveiw you posted. Please don't feel offended, I'm just not sure if it's just a comment or something I need to improve on but don't worry the story is not exactly like "The Princess and the Frog". I actually plan it to be very different and make it more original. I thank you for encouraging me to continue the story in your second review and I am very glad you like it so far. What is this challenge you speak of? If you elaborate it more then I would have a better understanding of this challenge and have an answer for you.

To Misty Dream, Hikarusky, Hikaru-Sapphire, Lightning-Clouds , and RainShine: Sorry for putting you guys in the spotlight right now. There was no reply option for you guys so I had to improvise. I am not sure if you guys are still reading this story but I hope you are. Without you guys I wouldn't even have thought about extending this one-shot into a real story. Your reviews have made me feel confident. Thank you so much!

I have rambled enough now so lets go straight to the story shall we?! :)

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><p>Saix moved around the bushes with his gun to see if the lion was hiding in them. With nothing in them, he moved to the next bush. Suddenly something rustled in the bush behind him and immediately turned his gun near the bush. But sadly it was not the vermin he was looking for. It was a white rabbit that jumped out in front of him. He lowered his rifle and sighed. He looked in front of him and behind him; to the left and to the right. It was the same thing no matter where he turned, just trees and more trees. "There are so many damn trees around here." thought Saix with frustration.<p>

"Sir!" yelled Saix, "Sir! Xenmas sir, where are you?"

"Silence soldier, you'll scare the lion away." said the gray haired man who came out from some trees. Like always, Xenmas had the same emotionless face.

"Sir, the lion is nowhere to be found. There is no way to track it down."

"Giving up already? I thought you were better than this Saix. That's why I picked you for this mission."

"I didn't say I was giving up. I'm just saying that it seems impossible to find the animal. I mean, we are in a forest. The lion could be anywhere; maybe even gone."

"Not likely. The lion doesn't even know where to go. It could be going in circles for all we know. You just need to find the right clues to lead you to what you desire. Besides, we can't go back to the organization until we find the lion."

Xenmas and Saix stopped talking when they surprisingly heard a huge splash somewhere nearby. Minutes later they could hear screaming and yelling further away from where the splash came from. Xenmas grinned and loaded his rifle, "Looks like we found our clue Saix."

~X~

Sora's body was shaking after he heard the two hunters coming closer and closer to him. Many bad thoughts went through his brain until he felt two small hands tugging on his hand. He looked over his arm and saw Xion trying to pull his hand off her mouth.

"Oh, sorry Xion." Sora said as he took his hand off of Xion's face.

"Sora," Xion said with a worried voice, "those voices… they belong to those men that chased you right?"

"Yeah. C'mon lets go." Sora got up and pulled the girl up too. Then he dragged her along with his hand holding her hand as he ran from the open area into the deep forest. The two ran straight ahead without looking behind them.

"Sora, why are those two trying to catch you?" asked Xion.

"Now is not a good time to ask." answered Sora, "Once we get out of here I can explain everything to you. We just need to… ugh!" Sora stopped running and made Xion bump into him. Xion saw Sora wince in pain as he held her hand tightly. He then turned his head to her with a scared face before his whole body glowed again. Xion let go of Sora to cover her eyes until the blinding light was gone. The raven haired girl uncovered her eyes to find a brown lion in front of her.

"No, no, no this can't be right! This is not supposed to happen. Why did I turn back into a lion?" exclaimed Sora.

"Did you hear that sir? I think the lion is over there." Xenmas and Saix broke into a run as they head toward the source of the noise.

"Oh no, Sora we have to go now! The hunters are coming!" yelled Xion. The shocked lion woke up from his stunned state and followed Xion's lead.

As they ran, the girl and the lion heard multiple "bangs" from a distance. Suddenly they found many bullets whizzing by them. The duo picked up the pace and tried to zigzag around the trees to make it difficult to get shot.

Xion was starting to feel fatigue in her legs but pushed herself to run forward. Every now and then, the ebony haired girl would wipe the sweat out of her eyes with her hands. Sora hadn't even thought about feeling tired. All he kept thinking about was getting away from the hunters as far as possible.

The forest was an endless maze in the eyes of Xion. It was as if the whole place was on loop. Her mind came back to the current situation when she heard a "thud" behind her. She looked back and saw Sora lying on his side instead of running. She stopped running and saw something sticking out of the side of Sora's torso. Fearing for the worse, Xion ran over to Sora's side.

"Sora, are you okay? We have to keep running, the hunters are coming!"

"Xion, is that you?" languidly said Sora with his eyes half closed, "My body… it can't move. I think I was hit."


End file.
